Posted by
tinab88
13 yrs ago
I applied to CDNIS for my 3 children, and after they sat through the admissions test, was told that one had passed and was offered a place, but told that the results of #2 were not good and she would be placed on a wait list (with sibling priority), and there was no place for #3 anyway. I then had to hunt for a school place for the other 2 kids. My 3 are therefor all now in 3 different locations all about 30 km apart, due to the tight situation for school vacancies. It's a nightmare as we had to pay all the initial fees three times, and it's a mess juggling transport, time tables, activities etc. However I accepted it as inevitable given the tight school spots.
Since then I have spoken to several parents who have had the same experience with CDNIS. That is - their children have sat for admissions test, only one was accepted and the others placed on a wait list and forced to school elsewhere.
Is this common practice with intl schools here? Or unique to CDNIS?
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As a teacher I do see families where siblings go to different schools. Now to me the main issues is that the school holidays calendars are all different. I teach in one school and my 2 children attend another and we don t have the same holidays. So check the school calendar of cdnis and the other schools where you re hoping to send your other two. Good luck !!
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def. not a ploy...my wife is on staff there and our daughter was only 'conditionally' accepted after her audition (let's be clear that that is what it is at pre-reception age)...they had over 400 auditioning for 44 spaces in pre-reception for example...
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The only school I know that hasn't accepted a sibling (no learning needs, etc.) is CDNIS. The woman I know eventually got her in, but it took a lot of talking, persuading, etc. She's doing fine, just a different child than her brother (of course). I know many parents with kids in different schools but that's mostly personal choices depending on what works well for the child. I haven't heard (besides this one case) of siblings not getting admitted in the same school, but I know it happens (not to people I know though).
I can understand that you don't automatically take siblings, but I would hope my school would make it a priority to try to fit my other child/children in, given there are no super special needs the school won't be able to cater for.
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keep in mind that class size is fixed...if your friend had a kid whose grade level was simply full, the school can't just add another desk...it's a numbers game, esp in the primary school.
also, i believe leavers are rare at cdnis as it is an elite school. once you're in, typically you stay for the duration (a large percentage are local) so it's a bit different from some other IS/ESF schools where expat families may be more likely to go, opening up spaces
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Agree - not a ploy. In addition to the numbers game and passing the audition, I'd say that I have seen a number of rejections for the reason of 'not a good fit'.
Many families have been forced to split kids in different schools not only CDNIS. In my daughter's class, one of her classmates is one of triplets. The school accepted 2 out of 3. The family accepted the offer and put the 3rd child in another school!
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